The Greatest Treasure

Being a new father changed my perception of the world, as I discovered that children inhabit a completely different one to us adults. Ours is that of the mundane, the constant worry of paying the bills, with the daily grind of travelling to work, whereas theirs is one of wonder and magic, where time as we know it does not exist and where anything is possible. We were all children once, so logically we must all have inhabited this same world at some point of time. Whatever happened to us?

Needless to say I had a constant flow of experiences from Christopher during his early years to provide the inspiration for the verses that eventually found their way into my first book,

As with all children, they start to grow up and other interests come along such as television, video games, music etc. So the pile of verses were put in a box and found their way down to the cellar, where I rediscovered them years later. Chris re-read some of them and suggested it would be a nice thing if I were to publish them. This I did and I presented him with the first print edition on his 21st birthday.

It is strangely daunting to see my once personal and private thoughts, which were originally written to be shared only with my son, being advertised for sale and read by people across the globe. As well as in the UK, copies have been bought in the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and even Japan.  

It is time to pass them on to the next generation and the generation after that. As I conclude in the book's introduction:

'This collection is a celebration of the early years of wonder and make-believe, which pass by too quickly. I share them here in the hope that you may find as much pleasure reading them together, as we did.' 

About Me

Hi I'm Richard, born 20th April 1956 to Fred and Margaret in Enfield, North London, England. I have three younger brothers David, Robert and Gary

Educated at Chesterfield Primary School, Albany School and finally when the family moved, Tottenham School. I studied 16mm film production at St Martins School of Art and studio television production at Goldsmiths College. In Tottenham we lived only a short walk away from White Hart Lane Stadium, home to Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, which provided many happy (and frustrating - ask any Spurs fan) Saturday afternoons.

I worked for the Independent Broadcasting Authority and Independent Television Commission (the forerunners of Ofcom) during which time I met and married Kate) and at Channel Four Television during which time our son Christopher was born. 

Combining my love of film/television and the practical skills gained working in IT, I then worked as a Project Manager providing IT infrastructure for independent television productions on location. I currently work as an IT Manager in North London and live in Palmers Green, Enfield.